Fish & Game row over dead man's money escalates with calls for independent chair to take over

Five of North Canterbury Fish and Game's own councillors raised financial and transparency concerns. Photo / File

Furious councillors of an embattled Fish & Game regional council questioned over its handling of a $500,000 bequest have today called for an independent chair to be rushed in.

An investigation into North Canterbury Fish & Game Council was launched earlier this year after five of its own councillors raised financial and transparency concerns and questioned how a generous bequest was being spent.

A draft review of the audit's findings, leaked to the Herald, alleges $49,500 of the late Christchurch fisherman James Walter McIntyre's bequest was used for improvements to the regional council's Johns Rd head office in Christchurch.

It also claimed a payment of $16,875 was made to the Water and Wildlife Habitat Trust - a separate entity with independent trustees but which receives funding from North Canterbury Fish & Game.

The conditions of the bequest, seen by the Herald, stated: "I gift – my residuary estate to Fish & Game NZ North Canterbury. Without imposing any trust, I request that a member of the NZ Salmon Angler's Association be present when Fish & Game NZ make any decision on using the benefit received under this will and that the benefit received be used to restock the Waimakariri and Rakaia rivers with salmon."

Chairman Trevor Isitt issued a statement this morning through a Christchurch PR firm to refute what he called "disturbing rumours".

Isitt claimed that funds used for the "completion of the building using general reserves" were approved by the North Canterbury council at its formally constituted meeting on February 15, 2017.

He denied that any bequest money was used and "no council resolutions were ever made to use bequest funds for the building".

But now, the five North Canterbury councillors - Ken Lee, Alan Strong, Craig Maylam, Denis Kelliher, and Phillip Musson - have responded to criticise Isitt's claims, saying he "does not reflect the opinion or have the approval of the full North Canterbury Fish & Game Council".

The group says Isitt's statement "contradicts the findings of a very experienced auditor".

"The leaked report shows a failure of process in following Mr McIntyre's wishes and a lack of clarity as to if this was voted on in council. We have always felt this was morally wrong and are vindicated by the findings," the group said, in a statement.

"The dire state of the finances of North Canterbury Fish & Game shows a complete failure of management process. The level of governance and management failures should become apparent when the final report is made public.

"There is now a complete lack of trust of the organisation by the anglers and hunters in the region as well as the general public."

The group says it wants to follow the leaked report's recommendation and have an independent chair appointed by the Minister of Conservation before the next council meeting on October 17.

And in an extraordinary move, the national Fish & Game body issued a statement this afternoon, backing the audit process and the draft report.

It said the draft findings came from interviews with all North Canterbury's councillors and the region's staff, backed up by scrutiny of meeting minutes and financial records.

"The process that auditor Bruce Robertson followed was professional, conscientious and has resulted in a robust draft audit. He is one of the country's most experienced auditors and has our full confidence," said Fish & Game New Zealand Chief Executive Martin Taylor.

"Fish & Game insists on the very highest standards for all its regions and is determined to ensure those standards are met."

Affected parties have a chance to respond to the draft document before the auditor releases his final report.

New Zealand Salmon Anglers Association spokesman Paul Hodgson said his group has never been consulted over the spending of the bequest, as per McIntyre's wishes.

"They quite clearly haven't honoured the intent behind the money that was gifted," Hodgson told the Herald.

He said it was "unacceptable" and questioned why North Canterbury Fish & Game is "operating under a veil of secrecy".

At a public meeting on August 15, officials were challenged by a disgruntled volunteer who asked: "What have you done with the dead man's money?"

The polls are currently open in Fish & Game's elections to select councillors to represent the interests of licence holders, anglers and hunters, in each of the organisation's 12 regions around the country.

The North Canterbury branch, which oversees a vast geographical area from south of the Rakaia River, north to the Hurunui River, and inland to the Southern Alps, including the Canterbury Plains, Christchurch, and Banks Peninsula, has overspent by $734,580 in the past decade.

It has gone over budget nine of the past 10 years, according to financial data obtained by the Herald.

The auditor has raised concerns over finance and budget losses, highlighting negative cash flows from operations over the past two years of $93,832 and $159,529 respectively.

And in the past two completed years, the auditor noted a "disturbing trend" where the budget surplus combined was $163,238 while the actual result was a $428,085 loss.

Although the regional council is small, with an annual turnover of only about $1.85 million, its accounting processes "lack simplicity, efficiency and transparency", the auditor concluded.

"It would be wise to consider the value of the council being enabled to appoint an independent chair to work with NCFGC through this process. This would be for the benefit of both councillors and staff," the auditor said.